School Year Opens with Dozens of New Global Health Students and Scholars

After another summer that has gone by all too quickly, it’s hard to believe, but it’s that time again: back to school! As returning global health students and scholars wrap up their fieldwork in 30 different countries, DGHI is welcoming its largest cohort of master’s degree students ever, several new doctoral scholars and hundreds of returning undergraduate majors and minors.

DGHI Welcomes its Largest Master’s Cohort to Date

This fall, the eighth year of the program, the Master of Science in Global Health (MSc-GH) cohort is the largest ever with 44 students. The first-year master’s students—eight men and 36 women—will join a cohort of 33 returning students. 

The students in the new class hail from eight different countries—Canada, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya, Republic of Congo, Sri Lanka and the United States—and speak a total of 17 languages. Their undergraduate degrees range from religious studies to political science to neuroscience.

Five of the new students are participants in the Global Health Pathway for Residents and Fellows, a program led by the Duke Hubert-Yeargan Center for Global Health.

Eight of the students are Duke University alumni, including three 2016 graduates. "The decision to stay at DGHI to pursue my MSc-GH was an easy one," said Hailey Diaz '16, who co-majored in Spanish and global health. "The ability to build upon the relationships and connections that I have already made and and to continue to take advantage of all of the unbelievable resources and career opportunities that are available here are unparalleled."  

Thirteen students—the highest number to date—matriculated in the MSc-GH program at Duke Kunshan University in Kunshan, China, with five students from the United States and the rest from China.

DGHI’s Doctoral Programs Continue to Thrive 

DGHI offers two global health doctoral programs: Doctoral Scholars and the Doctoral Certificate—each designed to engage PhD candidates from across Duke to integrate their primary discipline with global health. 

DGHI currently has 11 doctoral scholars (seven who are currently funded through the program) and 15 certificate candidates. These students represent a wide range of disciplines, including engineering, economics, environmental studies, anthropology, clinical psychology and nursing, to name just a few. The scholars’ fieldwork locations are equally diverse, including Madre de Dios, Peru; Kandal Province, Cambodia; Odisha, India, and many countries in between. 

Undergrad Programs Continue to Attract Students from across Duke

As we enter the 2016-2017 school year, DGHI has 140 global health majors and 107 minors. Students who major in global health are required to select a co-major; the co-majors span disciplines from biology to computer science to evolutionary anthropology.